Sean: Yes.
She still had mixed feelings over that and would have to find some way to get past the Tessa-almost-killing-Sean thing.
Sean: Jealous?
Nicole: Hell no. She’ll keep you from stealing my snacks.
When he texted a drooling emoji, she laughed.
The restaurant was packed, so she ate at the bar and read an ebook.
“Hey,” a man said behind her. Leaning in on her right, he rested a hand on the bar. “Whatcha readin’?”
“How not to get picked up in a bar,” she responded without looking up.
He laughed. “Doesn’t sound very interestin’. Can I—?”
“Nope.”
“You didn’t let me—”
“Nope.”
Muttering something derogatory under his breath, he left.
Sean texted her a laughing emoji.
Smiling, she finished her meal and spent the next hour sipping club soda.
Another man approached her and received a similar “Nope.” Then another.
Sighing, she texted Sean again.
Nicole: I think I may be antisocial.
Sean: I’m OK with that.
She laughed.
“Hi, Becca,” a woman said cheerfully behind her.
Oh crap. Nicole tensed. Though she had avoided Becca’s friends for the past couple of weeks, she supposed running into one at a popular hangout had been inevitable.
Hoping she could pull this off, she swiveled on her stool.
Tessa grinned and gave her a little wave.
Nicole relaxed. Thank goodness. “Hi. What are you doing here? I thought you had to work tonight.”
Tessa claimed the stool beside her. She wore a bulky hoodie she’d borrowed from Sean over hunting blacks. She had also unbraided her dark hair and let it flow down her back in pretty waves. “Business was slow, so they let me leave early.”
Happy to have company for a change, Nicole smiled. “Awesome.”
“What’s good here?”
“Drinks or food?”
“Food.”
“Are you looking for a snack or a meal?”
“A snack.”
“Then you should try the spicy nachos. They’re totally addictive.”
“Excellent.”
While Tessa placed her order, Nicole’s phone dinged with a new message.
Sean: Save me some!
Nicole laughed and showed it to Tessa.
The two ended up eating all the nachos while they chatted, meandering from topic to topic, so they ordered extra to go. When they left, Tessa carried the container in a bag bearing the restaurant’s logo.
Nicole shivered. Another cold front must be rolling in. The temperature had dropped enough for her to envy Tessa and Sean’s ability to regulate their body temperature.
Nicole’s phone dinged as they strolled onto campus.
Sean: Walk faster. Those smell delicious.
Another drooling emoji followed.
She grinned.
Nicole: Change of plans. I’m eating them as soon as I reach the—
A heavy weight slammed into Nicole, knocking the breath out of her and sweeping her off her feet. Campus buildings blurred as arms clamped around her in a clumsy cradle. Her phone tumbled from her fingers. Wind whipped her, much colder as her abductor raced forward at inhuman speeds.
Momentarily stunned, she fought to regain her breath. Had the bastard broken her ribs?
Pain shot through her neck as fangs pierced her flesh.
Crap. Gritting her teeth, Nicole hastily fumbled in her pocket and withdrew an autoinjector. Her head started to swim as if she’d had too many drinks. Flipping the cap off, she jabbed the bastard in the side, the only part of him she could reach with his tight hold restricting her movements.
Grunting, he jerked his head back and cursed.
Nicole cried out as his fangs tore her flesh. Warmth poured down her front.
“What—?” The vampire’s hold loosened. Still running at preternatural speeds, he stumbled.
Nicole flew out of his arms and hit something hard.
Pain exploded in her head.
Darkness.
Sean smiled as he awaited Nicole’s next text. Her spirits seemed lighter now than they had earlier.
Good. All teasing aside, he could tell the long wait and the continued restrictions induced by her Becca disguise were aggravating her. Sean had Cliff and Emma to keep him company during the day and still got to hang with his other friends at David’s place once he finished hunting at night. Nicole didn’t. Chris had told her to refrain from heading to her usual hangouts—namely, Sean’s house, the network, or David’s place—at night or during the day until they knew what or whom they were dealing with. The only people Chris wanted her to have verbal contact with over the phone or FaceTime was Kayla and Nick.
Hence the texts Sean had sent to make her laugh.
From his perch on the roof of a building near her dorm, he watched her smile and start to text something that would undoubtedly make him grin.
Walking beside her, Tessa frowned suddenly and glanced toward the west.
A second later, Nicole was gone, swept away by a figure who ran so fast he blurred.
Shit!
Her phone clattered to the sidewalk.
Gasping, Tessa dropped the bag of nachos and raced after them.
Sean leaped off the four-story building and landed safely in a crouch. Taking off like a rocket, he chased the others at top speed. Please, don’t let him hurt her. Please, don’t let him hurt her, he chanted in his head.
Tessa was fast. She would catch whoever had taken Nicole and—
Up ahead, Tessa swore.
A thud sounded, followed by a rustle.
Sean’s heart thudded wildly in his chest. There!
A man lay facedown on the sidewalk, unmoving, one arm bent at an unnatural angle.
Several yards away, Tessa bent over a figure crumpled at the base of a tree.
His heart sank.
Nicole lay on her stomach, as still as death, and made no sound as Tessa gently took her by the shoulders.
“No!” Skidding to a halt beside them, he sank to one knee and brushed Tessa’s hands aside. “Don’t move her. Not until we assess her injuries.”
“She tranqed him.” Tessa clenched her hands into fists on her thighs. “He went down, and she kept going. I couldn’t reach her before she hit the tree.”
Hands shaking, Sean leaned over Nicole and brushed her hair back. “What hit first? Her head? Her back? Her neck?” Her face appeared unmarred.
“I don’t know,” Tessa said, her voice thick with tears. “But I heard a crack.”
“Call Seth.” Icy fear filled him. If Nicole had broken her neck…
The sounds of a number being dialed accompanied his jagged breaths.
Sean had healed many of his sister’s injuries over the years. But Krysta had never suffered damage to her neck or spinal cord.
He swiftly ran through everything Melanie had taught him regarding neck injuries. A broken neck didn’t necessarily mean death. But if the spinal cord was damaged, it could disrupt the signals from the brain that controlled breathing.
He silenced his harsh breaths so he could listen for hers. Tears of relief filled his eyes when he caught the sounds of both her breathing and her heartbeat.
Then he noticed the blood pooling on the ground beneath her.
His eyes widened. There was so much of it! The damned vamp must have ripped open her carotid artery.